Nehemiah: Driven by holy ambition

There’s a bit of a standing joke in my family that every once in a while ‘Richard and Nehemiah’ are off on their travels again. The joke is not without foundation. He and I have travelled together from London to Lexington, Virginia. We have been up into the thin air of the Murree hills, outside Islamabad. We have travelled from the plains of Vojvodina, Serbia, to the banks of the Brahmaputra in India, and on up into the misty highlands of Shillong.

One of the reasons that I have taught so often from this book is that it is a uniquely autobiographical account of spiritual leadership, written in the first person. In effect, we are reading Nehemiah’s diary. So, what do we see in it?

Compassion

When Nehemiah first hears about the fate of God’s people he is hundreds of miles way, safely installed in a steady job in the imperial palace. However, he is so moved by what he hears that he spends upwards of three months (from Kislev in 1:1 to Nisan in 2:1) in fasting, prayer and sorrow. Truly great leadership without truly great compassion is impossible.

Management

To some ‘management’ is a dirty word in spiritual leadership. However, there is no reason why it should be. In Nehemiah 3 you can read a detailed account of how Nehemiah deployed all the people in building the walls. Try as you might, though, you will not find his name on the list. In this case, his task was to organise and not to do – a role which many Christian leaders find uncomfortable.

Integrity

When Nehemiah becomes aware of dubious financial practices going on amongst his people in Nehemiah 5 he not only puts a stop to them, but amends his own financial dealings too. He foregoes all manner of financial privileges to underline his point (Neh 5:14-18).

Persistence

When Nehemiah returns to Jerusalem many years later as an old man, he has lost none of his fire and passion. Without a backward glance he sets to work to put right those things which have been allowed to go wrong. Temple property is restored (13:6-9); temple singers and staff have their wages restored (13:10-13) and Sabbath rules are reinstated (13:19-22). Far from mellowing with age, this is an old servant of God whose zeal is as great as ever.

Holy Ambition

Having overseen the reconstruction of an entire city, using only volunteer labour, in only 52 days, you might think that Nehemiah would want to be remembered as an architect or builder. You would be wrong. Nehemiah’s closing words are as simple as they are disarming:

I once attended a seminar on ‘vision building and strategic management’ and was asked to start the day by completing the outline of an empty tombstone with my own epitaph. It certainly focused the mind! Nehemiah’s epitaph was simple, profound and honourable. I should be honoured to emulate it.

Bible Reflections

Every week, in hundreds of churches and Christian organisations across the UK,
leaders and congregations wrestle with the bible to determine both its meaning and
application for our lives today. This website aims to bring together this material
— both in written and spoken word — in
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